Top architect blasts 'free-riding' tenants living in council houses in central London and says they should be moved, to make way for HIS staff

Top architect Patrik Schumacher said council tenants, similar to those on the Aylesbury Estate in London, should be moved Axel Drainville

A top London architect has triggered a ferocious storm by calling for “free-riding” council tenants to be moved out of central London and for affordable housing to be abolished.

In a hugely controversial speech Patrik Schumacher, director and principal of Zaha Hadid Architects, also praised London’s foreign second home owners “even if they’re here only for a few weeks” and suggested that “80 per cent of Hyde Park” should be built over.

The 55-year-old “starchitect” succeeded Zaha Hadid - designer of the London Aquatic Centre in Stratford - as head of the world renowned Clerkenwell practice following her death in March this year.

In his incendiary address to the World Architecture Festival in Berlin he said London’s housing crisis was the result of “intellectually bankrupt” planning departments and said only the free market can provide “housing for everyone.”

But it is the comments on social housing that have provoked the most furious response with one critic dubbing the Germany born designer “the Donald Trump of architecture.”

He said that social housing tenants in gentrifying inner city areas should not expect to be able to carry on living in central London when their council estates are demolished and should be replaced by more “productive” residents - such as his own staff.

Mr Schumacher, who had worked alongside Hadid since 1988, said: “The fact that somebody has enjoyed the privilege of a subsidised central location for some time in my view does not and should not establish ownership over this public resource.

“Is it not fair that now it’s somebody else turn to enjoy this central location? Especially if it is those who really need it to be be productive and to be better able to produce the support required for those who have been subsised all along and will continue to be subsidised.”

He said it made more sense for his own employees “who are working very hard and generating value, having to commute and having flat shares” to occupy central London areas that are currently “left to people who are free-riding and backed by the police for decades and supposedly for decades to come.”

A 3d look inside Dame Zaha Hadid's Olympic Aquatics Centre Dame

In a seven point “urban policy manifesto” for solving the housing crisis Mr Schumacher said one demand would be to “abolish all forms of social and affordable housing.”

He also said: “Foreign investment capital coming into town should and would be great news.”

He added: ”I know a lot of people that have second homes in London and I’m so glad they do. Even if they’re here only for a few weeks and throw some key parties, these are amazing multiplying events.”

The comments sparked an angry response from Sadiq Khan who described them as “out of touch” and “just plain wrong.”

The Mayor told the Standard: “One of our biggest strengths as a city is our diversity, with Londoners from different backgrounds living side by side.

"So whether these out of touch comments were designed to shock or not, anyone who thinks abolishing affordable housing altogether, supporting ‘buy-to-leave’ empty properties, and building on Hyde Park is the answer to London’s housing crisis doesn’t understand the first thing about our great city.

“I was elected as Mayor because of my commitment to tackle the housing crisis. I know – and most Londoners agree – that this means building more new and affordable homes for Londoners to rent and buy, and protecting our public square and parks.

"I’ll listen to any ideas people have about tackling the housing crisis, but in this case Mr Schumacher is just plain wrong.”

A live stream video of his speech on the Dezeen architectural magazine website, provoked hundreds of comments, most highly critical, although some were supportive.

Simon Elmer, co-founder of The Architects for Social Housing described his views as “pretty crude social engineering” and challenged Mr Schumacher to a public debate on the issues raised in London, which he has accepted.

After the conference Mr Schumacher described his speech as “brainstorming” but repeated the view that his staff could not be expected to live in “provincial” areas because it would “make them less productive and compromise their careers.”

He later said in a Facebook post that the views were his own and did not represent the policies of the practice he leads.

He wrote: “Would I recommend ZHA to refuse a social housing project? Not at all! We did in fact deliver social housing in Vienna and we a proud of what we have contributed to there.”

A spokesman for Zaha Hadid architects said: “As with all members of our team, Patrik is free to express his thoughts to broaden dialogue towards finding solutions to critical issues.

"These personal discussions do not reflect the views of the practice that has delivered 56 transformational projects for all members of the community in 45 cities around the world over the past three decades."